In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
The Religious Authority, Grand Ayatullah H.E. Sayyed M. H. Fadlullah delivered the two Friday prayer sermons at the Imamain Al-Hassanain Mosque on Jumada al-Oula 21, 1422 AH/ August 10, 2001, AD. Several prominent religious scholars, dignitaries, officials, and thousands of believers attended the Jumu’a prayer. (Edited version of the Sermons)
The First Sermon
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Hold Firmly to the Rope of Allah
One of the important issues the Holy Quran has underscored is the issue of unity. Allah, the Most Exalted, wants the Muslims and Islam to be strong; something that cannot be achieved unless the Muslims unite on the general lines, although they might still differ on certain details.
Allah, the Most Exalted, dealt with the issue of unity in several verses in the Quran. In the beginning, He dealt with it in His message to His Messengers, asking them to do good and reminding them that "your religion is one religion." Surat al-Anbiya (21:92) and that He is their Lord that they ought to worship. This unity of all messengers on the basis of piety and worshipping of Allah, the Most Exalted, is an indication to their followers that all the messages, too, are essentially the same, and that there is no difference between the messages of Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus except in how detailed or specific each one is, in accordance with the social needs of the people it is sent to.
Therefore, the dialogue among religions is a central and vital issue in the Quran. It commanded the Messenger and the Muslims to call the People of the Book—the Jews, the Christians—to reach a common ground on the basis of the oneness of Allah, the Most Exalted, and the unity of mankind. He wanted the Muslims to base their discussions with the People of the Book on reciprocal recognition. The Muslims recognize the religion of the others, and those in return recognize the Muslims' beliefs:
"Say, 'We have believed in Allah and in what was revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants, and in what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims [in submission] to Him.'" Surat Al 'Imran (3:84)
The Muslim discourse in a mixed society is a discourse of unity that recognizes the existing pluralism.
For this unity could lead to the convergence of all lines into a common ground. And this is what we learn from the Prophet’s experience in Medina, where the Jews used to constitute a large group living with the tribes of Aws and Khazraj, who became Muslims. The Messenger (p.) wanted to organize the society in Medina so that he could concentrate on the outside world. Thus, the Prophet held the first treaty in that region in which the Jews were one of the parties, for he wanted that mixed society to integrate and probably become united in the end.
Thus, Islam searches for what it meets upon with others, so that both parties become closer both intellectually and psychologically. If this is the case with other religions, it comes without saying that Islam wants the Muslims to join hands and unite to serve their common causes and not let anything outside Islam draw them apart:
"And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided." Surat Al 'Imran (3:103)
The rope of Allah, the Most Exalted, as the interpreters say and as the Prophet confirmed, is the Quran. The Prophet (saw) says:
"I am leaving among you what, if you cling to it, you will never be led astray: the Book of Allah, the Most Exalted, a rope that stretches between the earth and heaven, and the Members of my family."
To cling to this rope obviously means to follow all that the Quran says on every level, whether intellectual, practical, legal, or otherwise, and never act in a contradictory way in your private and public lives, so that we would feel that this rope is what joins us together, being the Book of Allah, the Most Exalted, which falsehood cannot draw near.
Yet the Muslims are of various nationalities and races, which poses the question of calling for a national unity or a unity of race and even feeling that there are things that divide between one race and another.
Islam did not prevent us from belonging to our nations or races, but it asked us not to raise them as our principles.
"O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted." Surat al-Hujurat (49:13)
Our differences are the road to know one another, while Islam is the rope that unites us.
Now there are other kinds of differences in the Muslim community. The political or jurisprudent differences: when the question of succeeding the Prophet was raised, the Muslims were divided between those who called for the caliphate and those who called for the Imamate, and thus we had the Sunnis and the Shiites. Then both groups divided into subgroups. Then, as time passed, the difference between the two major groups grew bigger to the extent that people started to treat the sect as a religion, and Shiites started not to pray in Sunni mosques and vice versa. And they even began to accuse one another of unbelief.
Allah, the Most Exalted, has solved this problem: He told us that when you differ upon something, like the difference between the Shiites who say that the caliphate belongs to Ali and the Sunnis who say it belongs to Abi Bakr, you have, since you believe in Allah, the Most Exalted, and His Messenger (p.), to refer to them, for this is the common basis you both agree upon. Sit down together and study the matter in an objective and academic manner to learn what does Allah, the Most Exalted, say about the issue you differ on. The same thing applies to the differences inside each sect. In the Shiite sect, for example, the jurisprudent differences have reached a level that we call each other names. But since the difference is academic, the religious scholars can sit together and study the difference objectively on the basis of evidence derived from the Book and the Prophet’s traditions, while the public should not get involved since they are not qualified; they can only sit down and learn. What causes all these differences in the religious and political spheres is fanaticism, which was described by our tradition as an attribute we obtain from the devil, and which we should certainly do our best to rid ourselves of.
There will always be some individuals who will incite these fanatical differences among us. And if we are not vigilant enough and act on the basis of common belief and Islamic brotherhood, we will be overwhelmed by them.
Allah, the Most Exalted, wants us to believe that we are brothers: "The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers." Surat al-Hujurat (49:10)
He wants us to remain united by His rope and solve all our differences, whether social, political, religious, or jurisprudent, along the lines of piety and preserving the unity of belief and believers.
The Second Sermon
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Worshippers of Allah, the Most Exalted, be pious and uphold your unity especially as the others are trying to disperse us by inciting all religious and sectarian persecution to enable the Arrogance and Zionists to perpetuate their dominance.
The Palestinian Heroes
The Intifada is still going on against all odds especially the superiority of the Zionist killing machine… The last martyr operation in west Jerusalem was able to shake the Israeli sense of security. It also proved that Sharon’s plan of continuous escalation of terror and violence has failed to protect the Zionists. The Mujahedeen have proved that they can strike inside the enemy lines, for they are armed with the spirit of martyrdom and the determination to break Zionist arrogance.
The Israeli retaliation, demonstrated by capturing some of the Palestinian centers in Jerusalem, and the invasion of some of the liberated territories, as well as the shelling of cities and villages is only an expression of a burst of anger, but it will not affect the steadfastness, the determination and the strength of the Palestinian Mujahideen.
As for America, it condemns and protests because the operation dealt a severe blow to the Zionists. An American official declared a few days before, that Israel in its barbarian shelling and assassinations of Palestinians is not violating the American Arms act. This led the enemy to feel free to do what it wants. And it also proves that America is equally responsible for the Israeli brutal killing children, women and elderly, although it might sometimes pay some lip service to convince the Arabs that it is against these Killings.
America gives the Arabs worthless words, while supporting the enemy with arms and political stands and providing international protection. Moreover, America no longer talks about occupation and the need for withdrawal, as any freedom-loving nation ought to support. It now talks about condemning “violence” as though the Palestinians are the aggressors, and as if the Israelis are acting in self -defense.
As for the Arabs, they condemned the martyr operations and although they condemned the Zionist aggression, they did not provide the Palestinians with any substantial support.
In this respect, Europe too might provide some compliments to the Arabs and Palestinians. but it would not take any effective stands.
The Palestinian people are therefore the ones who are supposed to hold the bulk of responsibility and ensure with their determination and readiness to sacrifice that they will be triumphant in the end. The history of nations proves that the oppressed are the ones who will be victorious in the end despite the existing balance of force.
Furthermore, the Arab and Muslim popular movements are a political necessity. They should stand with the Palestinians, and stand against the American role in the region, for, in addition to their support to the enemy, the Americans continue to besiege Iraq and starve its people. They feel that they can inflict any punishment on the Arabs for they are fully aware that the Arab regimes are politically helpless.
Turkish-Israeli Relations
In view of the recent visit of the Butcher (Sharon) to Turkey in which he announced that he is going to continue to pursue the policy of assassinating the Palestinian activists, without any condemnation, on the part of Turkey, which asked so as not to lose face. Sharon to ease the Israeli Condition to resume negotiations.
I believe that the Turkish government is acting against the will of its people, when it holds a military alliance with Israeli.
Such an alliance could only be against the surrounding Arab and Muslim countries, especially Iran, Iraq and Syria. I reckon that the Arabs should punish the Turkish government for taking such a hostile stand against both Arabs and Muslims.
On another level, I appreciate the revitalization of the Islamic brotherly relations between Iran and the Emirates and hope that they will develop into a serious and objective dialogue to solve the current problems, especially the issue of the three Islands that America exploits to increase tensions.
Lebanon: freedom of Expression is Essential.
In the Lebanon internal front, I like to welcome any reconciliation between the Lebanese sects, for it puts a final end to the civil war and enable the dislocated to return to their towns and villages.
As for the latest detentions, I notice first that the issues of civil peace, preserving the stability and security of the Lebanese Army are of the most important priorities that cannot be compromised.
At the same time, I would like to point out that justice is not served when people are accused because of their thoughts and not their actions. The state, along with all its security apparatus, should not, under any circumstances, violate the public and civic liberties.
The Lebanese citizen should feel that the government protects him from himself and from the others and not persecute or oppress him.
Violating the freedom of the citizen does not serve the interests of the state. On the contrary it weakens it, which hurts the interests of all Lebanese.
I advise them to stop such acts for it undermines the image of Lebanon abroad.
I call for dialogue, and most importantly for the independence of the judiciary and keeping it out of the political game. The country faces a severe economic crisis that needs the participation of all Lebanese and all parties to find a way out. And the region is passing through a very critical stage that nobody could foresee what is going to happen.
In these circumstances we do not need additional problem and creating additional political, economic and security difficulties. We have to concentrate on facing the occupier and supporting the Palestinian Intifada. We have to preserve our national unity through objective dialogue so as not to let the future fall victim of the struggles of the present.